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December 26, 2015 • Vol. IX • No. 26 • 470 Maryland Drive • Ft. Washington, PA 19034 • 215/885-2900 • Toll Free 800-523-2200 • Fax 215/885-2910
Inside
Crews Work to Stabilize Road
Viaduct construction in the Central Valley has kicked off an 800-rail-mile, 24-station, $68 billion California high-speed rail project.
By Lori Tobias CEG CORRESPONDENT
Six days after heavy rains forced the closure of a section of Highway 101 on the north Oregon Coast, contractors were able to open one lane of the highway with flaggers directing traffic. More closures are expected, however, as crews work to stabilize this often troublesome stretch of road just north of Tillamook at mileposts 47 and 48. “You can drive through there and you can tell the soil has been moving,” said Lou Torres, spokesman of the Oregon Department of Transportation. “It’s got a long history of landslides and earth movement.”
Rough Terrain Surrounds Arizona Bridge Project...8
see ROADWAY page 12 Murphy Holds December Sale in Washington...70
Calif. Rail Project Begins By Chuck Harvey CEG CORRESPONDENT
IronPlanet Bets on Vegas for December Sale...72
Table of Contents ................4 Paving Section ..............25-33 Mini & Compact Equipment Section ..........................45-61 Auction Section ............65-73 Business Calendar ............68 Advertisers Index ..............74
Viaduct construction in the Central Valley has kicked off an 800-rail-mile, 24-station, $68 billion California highspeed rail project. Support columns are rising where the bullet trains will whisk across the Fresno River in Madera. The viaduct stretches from Raymond Road to Watson Street, crossing State Route 145 and the river, and running parallel with
the existing Burlington Northern Santa Fe railway track. “Continued progress on the high-speed rail program is evident by the work being done today at the Fresno River Bridge,” said Jeff Morales, High-Speed Rail Authority CEO in a recent release. “Californians will continue to see more jobs and sustainable construction activity as we ramp up building high-speed rail in the Central Valley.” see VIADUCT page 20
Once, the section is stable enough for crews to start on permanent repairs, they’ll excavate some of the area, let it settle, then bring in rock and gravel to try to build the area up.
Nov. Job Growth Up in Construction Industry Strong demand for construction projects fueled job growth in November in 38 states compared to October and in all but six states over the past 12 months, according to analysis of Labor Department data released Dec. 18 by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said, however, that the shortage of
available workers was likely keeping firms from expanding headcounts even more rapidly in many parts of the country. “In nearly every state, contractors are busier now than a year ago,” said Ken Simonson, chief economist for the association. “Employment is up, but the industry would be expanding even more
rapidly if contractors could find enough qualified workers.” Nationally, construction employment climbed by 4.2 percent from November 2014 to November 2015 — more than double the rate for total nonfarm employment, Simonson noted. He added out that construction spending rose 13 percent in the latest 12
months, suggesting a need for even more workers. He cautioned that filling those openings may be difficult in many states because the number of unemployed jobseekers in November who last worked in construction was at the lowest November level in 15 years. see EMPLOYMENT page 42